ihailla puuta
To say admire the tree in Finnish, use ihailla puuta, which means to look at a tree with pleasure and appreciation.
Ihailla carries the sense of looking at something with wonder or appreciation. To tell someone how much you admire a tree, you can say Arvostan tätä puuta suuresti. (I greatly admire this tree). More casually, you can say Vau, mikä upea puu! (wow, what a magnificent tree).
What does it mean word for word?
ihailla means to admire or to marvel at. puuta is the partitive form of puu (tree).
How does it change in a sentence?
ihailla takes its object in the partitive case, which is why the tree appears as puuta. The verb changes with the person: ihailee puuta means he or she admires the tree, and the imperative ihaile puuta tells one person to admire the tree.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use the basic form puu after ihailla. The verb requires the partitive puuta.
When do people say it?
Useful words for praising a tree include kaunis (beautiful), upea (gorgeous), ihana (lovely) and mahtava (awesome).
Did you know?
- The word puuta used here is unexpectedly related to the Russian word пуд, a traditional unit of weight. While in Finnish it means 'tree' or 'wood', its etymological roots link it to an old measuring system.
- The verb ihailla is a relatively recent addition to the Finnish language, with its first written appearance recorded in 1831.
- The root of the verb ihailla is related to the word ihme, which means 'wonder' or 'miracle'.
Examples in context
- Haluan vain ihailla puuta.I just want to admire the tree.
- Voimme ihailla puuta pihalla.We can admire the tree in the yard.
- Hän pysähtyi ihailla puuta.He stopped to admire the tree.
Example conversation
Matti and Laura are walking in a park.
- MattiKatso, kuinka kaunis tämä on!Look, how beautiful this is!
- LauraKyllä, haluan ihailla puuta vielä hetken.Yes, I want to admire the tree for a bit longer.
- MattiSe on todella upea.It is truly magnificent.
- LauraKäveläänpä sitten eteenpäin.Let's walk forward then.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ihailla, puuta, CC BY-SA 4.0.
